The skills we use at ~26 are being actively developed throughout childhood and our teen years, just typically not consciously. Most likely the device he's emplo

The skills we use at ~26 are being actively developed throughout childhood and our teen years, just typically not consciously. Most likely the device he's employing he had utilized frequently when he was growing up, perhaps as a means to convince other kids to do what he wanted or otherwise to get his way (whether with his peers, parents or other authority figures). It's Tom Sawyer's whitewashed fence. Jobs is trying to manipulate your mind and I don't mean that in a sinister way. Also keep in mind, Dale Carnegie's book How to Win Friends and Influence People was published in 1936 and was a very well-known book throughout Steve's life. There is a pretty good chance he ran across a few books like that which would have aided his advancement in manipulating impression, narrative or outcomes. He didn't have to entirely invent the wheel in that sense.